LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Louisville is closing out 2020 with a record number of homicides for the year. Two more people were killed before sunrise New Year's Eve, pushing the city's yearly total past 170 criminal homicides.
On Thursday, Rev. David Snardon, president of the Interdenominational Ministerial Coalition (IMC), stood with local pastors and religious leaders to reflect on the record year of violence and discuss what changes can be made for a better 2021.Â
"Each time someone is taken from us, it does not just affect the victim and their families, but it affects all of us," Snardon said.
Snardon said the problem has been growing for several years, and violence must be addressed by targeting other issues to prevent these acts.
"Now, people should people should be more motivated to do something about what we've been crying out about all along: housing, education, economics," he said. "It's the same things we've been saying from as long as I can remember."
Metro Councilman Bill Hollander said the city's budget committee recently approved $350,000 for an anti-violence initiative. However, that still has to be approved by the full council in a vote Monday.
If approved, Metro Council President David James said the money would go toward putting more outreach into the Office for Safe and Healthy Neighborhoods and funding a Group Violence Intervention Program.
"We have to do some proactive steps in order to make the numbers change," James said.
But he and IMC members said these funds would just be scratching the surface when it comes to making a dramatic change.Â
Louisville's Interdenominational Ministerial Coalition (IMC) holds press conference on New Year's Eve at Joshua Tabernacle Missionary Baptist Church
"I think it is the beginning. It is not the silver bullet, and it is not the only thing that's needed," James said. "We need a proactive police department. We need to find ways to combat poverty, because that's the root cause of most of our crime."
Snardon said IMC hopes to work with more churches in 2021 to become part of the solution and focus on preventing violence.Â
"I can tell you right now, $300,000 is not going to be enough for what we're seeing," he said.Â
In addition to more than 170 homicides in 2020, there have been hundreds of other non-fatal shootings in the city.Â
"We all live in this city together, and there's no such thing as your side of the canoe is sinking," James said. "We all have to work together to lift our entire city up."
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